


Stargazing

by milesofregrets



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Bi Duck, Fluff, M/M, Oneshot, Stargazing, TAZ Amnesty, This was just a little stress reliever, duck and indrid? wonderful. duck and minerva? gorgeous, indruck, short fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:40:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22640374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/milesofregrets/pseuds/milesofregrets
Summary: It's fall at Amnesty Lodge, and Duck spends some time with an unlikely friend.
Relationships: Indrid Cold/Duck Newton
Kudos: 23





	Stargazing

Amnesty Lodge during fall was a beautiful place to be.  
As orange, red, and gold colors flooded the forest and the air was filled with a crisp, earthy chill, it's residents leaned against their windows with contented sighs and watched the season fly by. Sweaters and starry nights, drizzling rain and the chirp of migrating birds were the comfortable indications of autumn that they had all come to enjoy during their time on earth. Some, like Jake and Mama, rejoiced in the promise of the coming winter, for reasons ranging from snowboarding to the money coming in from the tourists, while others like Aubrey simply loved the weather, claiming happily that the color scheme matched her own "Lady Flame" aesthetic. Dani would always laugh at this, merely appreciating that it was no longer too hot to take the long, slow walks in the woods she loved. During Halloween, scented candles set the wood walls aglow with atmospheric lighting. Pumpkins stacked outside, carved into varying faces all baring jagged-toothed smiles, marked the entryway, and the crackle of fireplaces and dead leaves filled the air. Barclay's voice, lowered and dramatic, as he recalled scary stories under flashlight to the kids staying with their families, echoed through the sprawling main room.   
It was a calm atmosphere, in other words. The season brought with it a sense of relief from the hot summer sun, and from the least busy time of year for Kepler, reminding everyone that they had a family willing to love them when their relatives on Slyvain would not. It wasn't uncommon to find the younger residents piled into a vacant room, stacks of pillows, sheets, and snack foods organized into a comfy nest while a movie marathon played, late into the night until the last of them had fallen asleep under the thrall of soft blankets.   
And in the valley far outside, in the Monongahela National Forest, Duck watched contentedly from the hood of his car as the lodge's lights faded for the night, and the stars came out to shine. He sighed and leaned back, hands tucked behind his head, eyes bright and thoughts finally calm, watching the night sky weave itself a tapestry of constellations, and letting the slight, refreshing chill sink into his skin. He watched as a bat darted by, just briefly outlined by the moon, and listened for the call of a thrush as it perched in the pines.  
Instead, he heard a familiar voice, just as melodic as a bird song.  
"Do you mind if I join you, Duck?"  
Duck jumped a little at the surprise, but wasn't frightened by Indrid's lilting voice.  
"Knock yourself out. Although, 'suppose you already knew the answer, huh?" Duck chuckled, turning his head to see the mothman laugh, red-tinted glasses reflecting starlight.  
"It would be rude not to wait for your answer either way. I believe you taught me that, did you not?" he grinned, silently walking to the side of the car, sighing and tilting his head just slightly to watch the sky light up.  
Duck snorted.  
"Yeah... yeah, bet I did, huh?" he trailed off, sliding to his left to make room on the hood, and patting his hand on the metal.  
Indrid obliged, daintily lifting himself to sit beside Duck, his scarf blowing just slightly in the gentle wind.  
"Lovely night." he commented, pulling the thick coat draped around his shoulders closer to his face, despite the mild weather.  
"If y'wanna go all Mothra on me, I don't mind. Know you get cold." Duck shrugged, drawing a relieved sigh from Indrid.  
"Terribly sorry. It's frustrating, you see; the fall season is quite beautiful, and I would love to see more of the forest as it changes, but... you know. Insects are not terribly gifted in body temperature management." he chuckled, rubbing a smudge from his glasses with his sleeve and then removing them carefully.   
Duck looked on, always fascinated watching any Slyph change forms. It was as strange as it was fascinating; he would be looking right at them, and one second they'd be human, but the next? Giant moth, in a blink. It was like their disguises had only been a figment of Duck's imagination, and he'd been pinched out of the daydream. Not to mention Indrid's form was, without exaggeration, a wonder. Now, Duck had seen other Slyphs without disguises. He'd seen Barclay, who grew taller, stronger, covered with thick brown fur. He'd seen Dani, her eyes turning a bright yellow and her teeth sharp and serrated, and he'd seen Jake, his selkie skin grey and mottled, with flippers that helped him glide through the hot springs. But Indrid... he was a marvel. Perhaps it was how wonderfully unusual he was. Similar to no other creature, only comparable to... well, a moth, with stunning, saucer-plate sized scarlet eyes, and a wingspan Duck couldn't even begin to measure. Indrid's body was thick with down and soft feathers, those wings dotted with rich brown spots and long, bushy antenna, and every time he transformed, Duck couldn't help but be awestruck, despite how Indrid would complain that humans feared his true form.  
That night was no different, although Duck had the manners not to stare that time around, only glancing at the outlines of Indrid's starlit wings. The mothman had a habit of meeting Duck when he least expected it in the forest, but never at an inopportune time, it seemed. He was considerate enough to not interrupt Duck when he was working, only appearing at the quietest times, like during the lull of a soft summer day when the sun was just warm enough to put him a sleepy haze and the grass was springy. It had become a nice break, although Duck would never have expected the surprise meetings, considering he didn't really see himself as a particularly interesting guy, certainly not worthy of the interest of a seer like Indrid, but hey. As it turned out, the two of them were almost becoming friends.   
"Tell me about your day, Duck." Indrid said with a relaxed sigh, the chittering accent of his moth form creeping up on his vowels.  
Duck raised an eyebrow.  
"Really? Don't imagine it'll be anything interesting to a guy like you. Plus, can't you tell anyway?" he snorted, pulling his eyes from the stars and looking to Indrid, who's deep red pupils were drawn to the ranger with curiosity.  
"I believe you're underselling yourself, Duck. I don't have to be surprised to have an enjoyable conversation." he purred, giving the best mimic of a smile he could give.  
Duck chuckled, folding his hands in his lap as the tips of Indrid's wings brushed against his shoulder.  
"Guess I could tell a couple stories, if ya really want me to."  
The wind picked up for a moment, and a golden leaf floated by their faces, making the two of them shiver. Indrid's feathers brushed his face that time, as he shifted closer, and Duck wanted to ignore the way his heart fluttered at the touch.   
"Got, uh... Got a couple hikers lost today. Said they got chased off by a bear, turns out it was just a stray tabby cat." he chuckled. "That ain't much to write home about, but... I had a good laugh."   
Indrid gave a sweet laugh in that sing-song way he did, fluttering his wings at the motion.   
"You know, I find that people are often overly wary of bears. They're really very sweet." Indrid commented, fiddling with the scarf that still hung loosely around his neck.   
Duck watched as a shooting star zipped by, and nodded.  
"'Specially black bears. And we don't even get grizzlies up in these parts, people just think we do when our local cryptids have a hard time keeping themselves on the down-low." he joked pointedly, elbowing Indrid, who nudged him back with a wing and chittered in protest.  
"If you were a giant moth, I bet you'd find secrecy equally as difficult."   
Duck laughed.  
"I tell ya, sometimes it pays to just be a normal-ass guy."   
There was a light moment of comfortable silence before Indrid chirped,  
"Then you're certainly the most interesting 'normal guy' I've ever met, Duck."  
Duck gave a little dismissive grin, suddenly very conscious of how close the two of them were, laying on the metal hood of the car, face hot.  
"You're a bit of a flirt today, huh?" he chuckled.  
Indrid only smiled a little, and twitched an antennae.  
"I am only being honest. After all... being a monster hunter takes a certain amount of finesse, wether you'd like to admit it or not." the mothman teased, drawing a swat from Duck, who snorted at the notion.  
"Never in a million years will I admit that."   
"But you acknowledge it's true?" Indrid asked in a tone of fake innocence, absentmindedly slipping his glasses back on and shifting forms.   
"Oh, fuck off."   
The two of them snickered, relaxing with sighs back onto their backs. The sky above was now bathed in darkness and twinkling lights scattered like freckles across it's galaxies that, on the day of a new moon, had come out to show their brightest shine.   
Duck was never much one for stargazing. Sure, he appreciated the beauty of the constellations in the forest sky, but he didn't particularly like to concern himself with matters of space. In his eyes, if there were other worlds out there, (which he now knew there were), surely they could handle themselves, also figuring Earth had plenty of it's own issues that needed to be dealt with, and that people aught'a have a greater appreciation for the natural beauty they had planet-side. But... there was just something about the autumn weather. The peaceful atmosphere, the gentle rustling of leaves, and the quiet company of his friend that contented him to sit and watch the sky that night, and let his eyelids grow heavy with sleep in the peace of the woods. And so they were quiet, happily quiet, for some amount of minutes that blurred together into a lengthy haze of twinkling stars and soft breathing, until Indrid cut through the silence.  
"Thank you for your company, Duck."  
Duck yawned, and sat up, pulled out of his trance.  
"Yeah... don't mention it."  
Indrid smiled.  
"I find there aren't very many folks quite as appreciative of a quiet conversation. It's...always nice to visit."  
Duck felt his heart thrum a little, ears heating up, and he shook his hat free of dirt and debris.  
"Nice to see y'too, Indrid. Drop by whenever you want," he replied with a smile, "though I guess you've been doin' that anyways."  
Indrid lept off the hood of the car, gave an exaggerated bow and grinned.  
"I guess I have, haven't I."  
Duck chuckled, and slid down to the dirt as well, watching as Indrid began to disappear into the dark of the tree cover, before noticing something with a start.  
"Y'forgot your scarf!" he called out, waving it in the air.  
Indrid turned back quickly, hands reaching up to his bare neck, before stopping and looking over Duck. He hummed thoughtfully, tapping on his glasses.   
"Keep it. It looks good on you."  
Duck could've sworn Indrid winked at him as he turned away.  
His face flushed a bright red.  
Cheeky motherfucker.

**Author's Note:**

> this was just a little writing exercise ! i might do some more of these little oneshots with other characters or duck and minerva, but for now, have some fluff


End file.
